Candidate Drives Home Message - At Nascar

U.S. Senate candidate Kendrick Meek is adding some horsepower to his race.

Fans in the stands and watching ESPN2 cable coverage of Saturday's NASCAR race in Daytona Beach will see Mike Wallace's No. 01 race car emblazoned with the "Kendrick Meek for U.S. Senate" logo.

And this isn't just any race. Driver Danica Patrick, the first woman to win an Indy Car race, will make her NASCAR Nationwide Series debut at the race at Daytona International Speedway - virtually guaranteeing high viewership.

Martin J. Sweet, a political scientist at Florida Atlantic University's Honors College, said it's a savvy attempt to bolster the Meek brand with North Florida conservatives who might ordinarily be more inclined toward Republican Senate candidates Charlie Crist and Marco Rubio.

Meek is giving up his Miami-based House seat, which includes part of south Broward, to seek the Democratic Senate nomination in the August primary.

His press secretary, Adam Sharon, said the one-time sponsorship is aimed at helping people know Meek. "It's introducing himself and having others learn more about him. It's a large venue to have that conversation."

While prices vary, top-level NASCAR Nationwide teams typically command $100,000 to $125,000 for a one-race paint scheme. Meek might have paid in the $25,000 to $50,000 range given the ranking of the driver.

Sharon declined to say how much the campaign paid for the one-time lead sponsorship.

Besides getting Meek's name before fans at the track and on cable TV, the move is generating media attention.

The communications director for the arm of the Republican Party responsible for promoting its party's Senate candidates, had this reaction to Meek's sponsorship on Twitter: "Steering hard left."

Staff Writer Sarah Talalay contributed to this report.

Anthony Man can be reached at aman@sunsentinel.com or 954-356-4550. See how other Democrats have tried to shore up their conservative bona fides with NASCAR sponsorships - which doesn't always work - at SunSentinel.com/BrowardPolitics